On the Menu: Meal Plan Reset

Anyone following this blog might infer that I have been starving over the last 3 months since I have neglected to share my weekly adventures in meal planning – but rest assured, I’ve been eating! Menu making on the other hand? Well, let’s just say that Summer 2015 has been an even split of one crazy project at work (thus junk for dinner at night) and glorious boating weekends (thus many a picnic with mini sandwiches). My man acquired a little beater of a boat and while he’s been fixing it up, I’ve been occupied with another all-consuming project at work… so things like blogging and gardening and and cleaning and meal planning (and generally doing anything other than driving to the office or tanning on a boat) have been abandoned and forgotten. These days, my life looks like this:

Work. Work. Work. Work. Work. BOAT!!!!! BOAT!!!!!!!!!! Sleep. Repeat.

It’s time to reset – there isn’t enough moderation in my life and I need to get into a more healthy pattern of balancing work and home. (Not that there’s anything wrong with spending my weekends on a boat, but even Lily is feeling neglected these days and that poor dog needs all the attention she can get.) So first things first: I’m restarting my weekly meal planning, or at least I’m going to try.

Sunday Food Party: As the saying goes, Go Big or Go Home. I decided to kick things off by putting a few favourites on the menu to get me back into the swing of cooking up a storm on the weekend. We’re long overdue for a large batch of my Bolognese – I’ll freeze most of the sauce but I’ll save some for later this week.

For lunch (today and every other day this week), I’m throwing together the Lemon Parsley Bean Salad that I’ve featured here a few times – it never gets old and I’ve got plenty of herbs in the backyard to toss in there. I also got a fillet of salmon that I’m going to cook as a side to the salad for some extra protein.

Next, a double batch of my Homemade Mac n’ Cheese – I’m going to freeze one and keep the other for dinner one night this week. I love a giant serving of that cheesy carbliciousness along with some greens, like this beauty from a few months ago (and yes, those are chips on top – my not-so-secret ingredient in this heavenly casserole):

Finally, (I told you this Sunday was a big one!) I am trying out this Summer Pasta with Zucchini, Ricotta, and Basil. (Yummmmmmmmmm. Why, why do I love ricotta so much!?) Sadly, the zucchini in this recipe will NOT come from my garden (the crisis in July turned into a full blown epidemic in August), but I picked up some zucchini from my local market, which is just as good.

Monday: Turkey Tacos with Homemade Taco Seasoning. This seasoning. Oh. My. Yes. It is so good!!! I urge you to try this and forever replace the weird processed stuff from the grocery store. It’s so easy to put together: Chili Powder, Garlic Powder, Onion Powder, Red Pepper Flakes, Oregano, Paprika, Cumin, Salt, Pepper, BOOM. As the recipe says, use 2 to 3 tablespoons with 1/2 to 3/4 cups of water over 1 pound of browned meat… so simple, so good! We’ll have some corn on the cob as our side along with all the classic taco toppings: salsa, sour cream, cheese, greens, etc.

Tuesday: Spaghetti Bolognese, courtesy of my Sunday Food Party.

Wednesday: Chicken, Broccoli, Rice. Our old favourite and we’ve got lots of chicken breasts chilling in the freezer (pun intended) ready for my man to do his thing.

Thursday: Mac n’ Cheese, courtesy of my Sunday Food Party along with some fresh green beans from my local market.

Friday: To be determined. I’m guessing we’ll be out for the night, or feasting on leftovers, or grabbing some takeout because my man’s best friend is getting married Labour Day Weekend so there are friends in town and lots of happenings.

Glad you liked the menu, Amanda! I agree, homemade seasoning definitely trumps the prepackaged stuff, especially since I can barely pronounce some of those scary ingredients on the box!! Thanks for the comment!